ULB Elections: State Govt To Move SC Against HC Order Over Reservation

Bhubaneswar: The schedule for the forthcoming elections to the urban local bodies (ULBs) in Odisha appears uncertain with the state government deciding to move the Supreme Court against the Odisha High Court order regarding reservation of seats.

“The state government will move the Supreme Court against the order of the High Court on the reservation of seats within a week,” director, municipal administration, Sangramjit Nayak, told the media on Wednesday.

The Orissa High Court has asked the state government not to exceed 50 per cent reservation of seats for the scheduled castes (SC), scheduled tribes (ST) and other backward classes (OBC) in the non-scheduled areas for the forthcoming ULB polls. This excludes scheduled areas.

 The court had also told the state government to limit the reservation of seats for OBCs to not more than 11 per cent as against 27 per cent earlier. However, the court noticed the violation of the order when the reservation quota for OBCs was more than 50 per cent in 50-55 ULBs.